Twisted Embers
by SinfulFox
Summary: Curiosity and a kind heart sure can get you into a lot of trouble! But then again... don't villains need kindness the most? Would that make befriending them a heroic deed? Or would it just make everything super complicated? (NEJIRE x DABI)
1. Heroes & Villains

**TWISTED EMBERS**  
 _Chapter 1: Heroes & Villains_

* * *

Curiosity and a kind heart sure can get you into a lot of trouble!  
But then again... don't villains need kindness the most?  
Would that make befriending them a heroic deed?  
Or would it just make everything super complicated?

Nejire/Dabi.  
Eventual Shigaraki/OC.  
 _Contains manga spoilers_.

* * *

Dust spiraled and fluttered around the air as another chunk of concrete crashed into the sidewalk, narrowly missing Pro Hero **Ryukyu** as she jumped back, a protective arm raising up to keep her intern from rushing forward. "Nejire, direct engagement isn't working with this guy." The screams of civilians filled the block as an unknown villain hovered high in the air above them, seemingly able to slice buildings apart with a flick of his wrist. Debris was scattered all along the street, having crushed cars and destroyed storefronts, and a frightened crowd frantically ran for cover.

"Totally! So like, what should we do?" The blue-haired female asked with excitement, her sapphire hues locked onto the villain.

"I'll stay here and try to protect anyone from getting injured. You try and flank him from behind— it looks like he's flying with some sort of device, so try and damage it. Let's get him on the ground."

"Yeah, yeah! Got it!"

Nejire darted off to the side, running down an alleyway to flee from the villain's line of sight and escape his attention. Ryukyu stayed at the front line, her body effortlessly transforming into a large dragon. With a vicious roar escaping her massive jaws, she used her scaled wings to shield those behind her from more falling debris.

"AHAHAHA~!" The villain's laughter challenged the Dragon Hero's roar as he gestured to the side, the building next to him crumbling further, its falling chunks shooting towards the dragon and crashing against her wings and the ground around her. "You really think a single hero and a child in training can stop me?!"

"Don't kid yourself— it's only a matter of time before more pros show up. You really think you can take on all of us?"

"More pros? Oh my, I'd be flattered! I hate to think I have such a low chance of victory... but, oh well! What can you do, hm~?"

Her eyes widened slightly as she reached up with a claw to strike down the flying debris. "You expect to lose? Then, what's your motive?"

"Motive—hahaha! What a curious notion! Do you think you can save everyone until backup arrives? If I can kill _just one person_... you've lost!" He broke out into laughter once more, both arms stretching out now as he prepared for a grand gesture, likely for an attack on a much larger scale than what he'd been using so far. However, before he could begin, a sudden shockwave of energy blasted him from behind, knocking him forward.

"Hey, hey! That thing on your back, it looks important!" The young heroine-in-training grinned, using her own Quirk to fly closer to him. "Do ya know what'll happen if I shoot it? Do ya?"

"NO NO NO—stop that— don't—!"

He tried to recover, to spin around and attack her directly, but another shockwave hit the jetpack attached to the back of his suit and it began to gurgle and choke and short out. As it lost power, he began to drop, cursing and shouting until it finally gave out completely. The dragon reached out to grab the falling villain with her claws, but with another flick of his wrist he pulled up a slab of pavement to create a barrier between them. She let out a growl and destroyed the barrier with a back-handed swipe, but he was already out of sight. She'd barely caught a glimpse of his figure as he disappeared from view, but Nejire quickly descended and hit the ground running.

" _Nejire, wait!_ " Her call was useless, as the girl had disappeared as quickly as the villain had. She wanted to run after her intern, but knew she needed to stay and make sure no one had been hurt.

* * *

Nejire panted quietly, slowing to a stop to catch her breath, hands resting on her knees. She glanced up and all around, blinking for a moment as she wondered to herself where he might have gone. She'd been hot on his trail but he'd taken so many turns that she was afraid she'd lost him. Hearing a sound, she quickly perked up and caught his afterimage as he rounded another corner, and took off running again—only to bump into another person as he suddenly emerged from the corner. With an _oof!_ she stumbled back, looking up to see a male with jet-black spiked hair, whose face was covered in burn scars and staples. Immediately she recognized him as a villain previously described on the news, when he and others attacked her lower-classmates at U.A's training camp.

"Now now, we can't have you following us this far." He spoke, his voice calm yet still threatening as he advanced towards her, attempting to stop her pursuit.

"Hey hey, I know you! You're with the League of Villains, aren't you! Yeah!" Furrowing her brow and pouting her lip, she tried to match his challenging demeanor. "So that guy is with you, huh? Is he? Is he with the League?" Her eyes widened slightly as he approached, stepping backwards to try and keep a bit of distance between them. He casually smiled, the staples tugging at the corners of his mouth as he held out his hand. Bright blue flames sputtered from his palm and quickly traveled up the burned, purple scars of his arms.

"Sorry, can't let you go any further. Might as well just turn ba—" His words were cut off as a spiraling wave of energy hit him directly in the chest, knocking him back several feet. He managed to catch himself, glaring to the female with a low growl as she stood her ground, arm outstretched as she prepared for another blast.

"Didja know? That's not what heroes do!"

"And what do _you_ know about being a hero?" He asked with a snarl, flames engulfing both arms now as he prepared to counterattack. "You just want the _praise_."

She fired out another blast as he suddenly charged towards her. He managed to dodge, his arm flaring up as he shot a burst of flames, and she used another blast to dissipate the fire as she jumped out of the way. Both were extremely fast, agile, level-headed fighters, and their spar took them further down the street and into an alleyway. They seemed entirely neck-and-neck, neither one having been able to land a solid hit since they began, until Nejire took a step back and slipped on a piece of litter, losing her balance just long enough for Dabi to take advantage. Rushing forward, he slammed her up against the side of the building and she flinched with a yelp, pain shooting down her spine.

"Heh. You're pretty good. What a shame."

His blue flames flickered up around her, but before he could do anything more, she released a powerful pulse of energy from her entire body. He went flying backwards, across the alley and hitting against the side of the adjacent building, the force from the blast cracking the concrete as he fell to the ground. Trembling from the impact, he picked himself up, barely to his knees when he saw her leap towards him.

" _HEY, LOOK OUT~!_ "

It had all happened so fast, it took him a moment to process everything. She'd dashed towards him, but—the look on her face, her widened and panicked eyes, it wasn't anything like what he'd seen from her during their brief scuffle. She hadn't attacked him either, instead towering over him, almost protectively, hands out and planted against the wall as she leaned over him, shielding him with her body. It wasn't until the damaged A/C unit bounced off her back and onto the ground that he realized what had just happened. The force that sent him flying must have knocked the unit out of place, and she must have noticed it falling from above while he was struggling to get to his feet.

"What...? A-Are you ok—" His voice trailed off as he gazed up at her, still in her protective position. Her eyes had softened and begun to close, expression becoming blank. He could see her body start to waver and quickly stood up to catch her before she collapsed. A small trickle of blood ran down the side of her face and his hand felt for the source of the injury, fingers running through her thick blue wavy locks before finding a cut at the back of her head. _Shit_ , he thought, glancing over to the A/C unit on the ground. _Why did she...?_ He shook his head, dismissing those thoughts. It didn't matter... it shouldn't matter. Not to him.

He knew she needed help, and gently scooped her up in his arms. Spinning around, he left the alleyway, wondering to himself where he could drop her off at— but froze instead, as Toga stood before him. Her eyes lit up as she saw the unconscious heroine in his arms, a feverish blush spreading across her cheeks as she grinned.

" _Ooooh_ ~ whaddaya got there, Dabi?"

He blinked, lowering his head as his bright sky-blue eyes glanced from the female in his grasp to the one standing in front of him. "She tried to stop me. Managed to knock her out."

"OHH~ fun, fun! Can we **kill** her?!"

"Geez, ya psycho, she's not even a pro... there's no point in killing her. We can just leave her somewhere and return to—"

" _LEAVE_ her? No way! Come on, she's already bleeding a little! Let me kill her!"

"No." He said firmly, his grip tightening on her. "That wouldn't serve any purpose. If anything..." Again, his gaze wandered down to her. "...perhaps Shigaraki would appreciate us bringing back a hostage."

"UGH— _seriously_? Hostages are no fun!"

"Yeah, well that dipshit new recruit didn't even claim a single casualty. At least with a hostage, it might not have all been in vain. Besides... this girl is a senior at U.A, right? That makes her pretty valuable to us. We'll see what Shigaraki says."

With a loud series of groans and complaints, Toga and Dabi walked off together towards the League's headquarters, his grip remaining tight and somewhat protective of the unconscious Nejire. The same question continued to burn in his mind, repeating itself over and over.

 _Why did she protect me?_

* * *

 **author's note** ;  
Damn, it's been a hot minute since I've actually sat down and written something! x_x  
I feel like I'm hella rusty, lmao. But I've been roleplaying in the BnHA verse lately and felt like writing a fic again!  
Especially because I wanna gain some supporters of this obscure af Nejire/Dabi ship... xD  
I just think they would be super cute! The cinnamon roll and the badass!  
ALSO there's just not ENOUGH fics for Nejire OR Dabi! ;-;

I also made a Nejire RP tumblr, so anyone is welcome to leave me messages or follow azurexsurge ! :D

As always, FEEDBACK is ADORED! Let me know if you're enjoying it! ;-;


	2. Friends & Enemies

**TWISTED EMBERS**  
 _Chapter 2: Friends & Enemies_

* * *

Nejire felt both the coolness of the pillow and the dull stinging at the back of her head as she slowly regained consciousness. Brows twitched and furrowed, a quiet groan escaping her lips as she opened her eyes, fingers reaching up to touch and poke at the bandage around her head. _Where am I...?_ With another groan, she sat up on the bed, yawning and sleepily rubbing at her eyes before looking around the room. It was pretty bare, and seemed to be some kind of storage area converted into a makeshift bedroom.

A finger rose to push gently against her lower lip as she tried to remember what happened before she blacked out. She remembered being out on patrol with Ryukyu when a villain attacked, and she remembered flying up behind him and blasting at his jetpack to knock him to the ground... Then he ran, and she followed... Her eyes suddenly widened. _The League of Villains! I have to tell Ryu he was with them!_ Sliding off the edge of the bed, her feet hit the ground and she realized she was barefoot. Looking around again, she noticed a change of clothes on a small table by the foot of the bed, with a pair of shoes on the floor next to it. It seemed to be a uniform from another school, but the size seemed close enough to fit. She'd been wearing the blue and white bodysuit of her hero costume, though her spiral horns, gauntlets, boots, and anklets were resting on a desk in the corner. _Curious~_ she thought to herself, _they must have found me and brought me back somewhere safe_.

Changing out of her bodysuit, she pulled on the new clothes. It was a more traditional-style Japanese school uniform — a light tan cardigan with a dark blue collar and a red bow, a matching blue skirt, knee-high socks and classic loafers. She tugged at the edges of the skirt and at the collar, adjusting things here and there before admiring the cute style and wondering what school this came from. Before letting herself get too distracted, she shook her head and clenched her fists in a nearly theatrical show of determination and focus, and swung open the door. . . and nearly knocked someone over.

"Ah~! I'm so sorry, I—" her apologetic flails froze as she stared at the other, a lizard-like male with a long tuft of lavendar hair, dressed similarly in fashion to the Hero Killer she'd seen on the news. "—hey hey, I've seen you before! You're a villain!"

He'd spun on his heels to face her, eyes widened already in shock yet widening further as he nervously reached over his shoulder and flexed his fingers as if something was supposed to be there. She'd already taken a defensive posture, hands up, fingers outstretched and ready to blast some energy, but hesitated on making the first move when she noticed a sweatdrop form at his temple. "Wait, no fair! I don't even have my sword on me!"

She blinked for a moment, her eyes softening as she slowly lowered her arms. "You're right, that isn't fair."

"Yeah I know it— wait... what? So you're not attacking?" He narrowed his reptilian gaze at her, his own arms lowering.

"If you're unarmed... that must mean I'm somewhere you're comfortable. That makes me the guest!" With a wide grin, she let out a laugh. "So I guess attacking you here wouldn't be very heroic at all."

It was his turn to blink at her, before scratching at the side of his head. "No, I guess it wouldn't." His eyes widened again as she suddenly darted towards him, ready to defend himself but caught off guard again as she squealed and pet at his hair. "Wh-what are you doing?!"

"It looked so fluffy! Which is funny, because you look like a lizard! Lizards usually aren't fluffy!"

Reaching up to smack her hand away, he snarled with a huff. "I'm not fluffy, little _hero_!"

"Oh! I'm Nejire~" she mused without missing a beat, completely undeterred by his snarling and trying again to pet him. "Are you a dragon maybe?"

" _NO I'M NOT A DRAGON, STOP TRYING TO PET ME_." He continued to swat at her hands as she kept trying to get around him, huffing every time he blocked her attempts. He finally managed to catch her firmly by her wrist as it hovered over his head, but she only giggled in response.

"It's just... I really love dragons. And lizards, too! You're just so cute!"

Again his eyes widened as he froze, a light blush surfacing through the dark green scales. "I... I'm _what_?!"

"Oh! You probably like being called handsome better, huh! SO! Didja hear me? I'm Nejire! Now you gotta tell me your name, Mr Handsome Lizard!"

His blush deepened ever so slightly as he furrowed his brow, trying to pull himself together. "S-Spinner."

" **DID I JUST HEAR A STUTTER~?** " Another male's voice rang out from behind her, and she glanced over her shoulder to see him emerge from around the corner; he was much taller, and dressed head to toe in a black bodysuit with white markings and white boots. "That's no fair teasing the poor guy! He's hopeless! Some villain, right? Besides..." Closing the gap between them, he reached out to lay a hand on her shoulder. "...everyone knows _I'M_ the handsome one in this group."

"Is that right?" Spinner muttered, nudging his reddened cheeks with the back of his hand, as if to wipe away the blush. "Then by all means, Twice, show her those stitches and see what she thinks."

With a loud, dramatic gasp, Twice glanced between the two of them, a hand at his mouth in pretend-shock. "How dare you talk about Dabi like that! You know how self conscious he—"

 _"You assholes talkin' shit about me again?"_

Both males seemed to jump as they all turned to see another approach them. Nejire's eyes widened as they settled on his distinct features - icy blue hues gazing out from under messy black spikes of hair, thick metal staples along every edge where burned scars met healthy flesh. It was the guy from before...!

"Hey hey! It's you!"

Dabi shifted his gaze ever so slightly to her, his expression otherwise blank and if anything, unamused. The other two seemed a bit uneasy, as if they were expecting him to lash out. "And?"

"I remember what happened now! Are you okay?"

 _"Is he okay?"_ the others asked each other quietly as they exchanged glances.

Dabi's expression remained unchanged. "Yeah, thanks to that idiot head of yours. _Tch_ , and you're training to be a hero?"

With a gentle smile, Nejire nodded. "I'm training to be someone who fights to protect everyone from harm. Doesn't that... include you, too?"

He was silent for a moment, though his features refused to show any hint of emotion. "If it does, you're gonna be a shitty **hero**. Either way, now that you're awake, boss man wants to speak to ya."

"Shigaraki?" Spinner nearly hissed. "What's he gonna do with her?"

"How the fuck do I know, and why the fuck do you care?" He asked coldly, glaring back at the lizard villain. "This girl's one of the top 3 students of U.A. I'm sure he'll have some kind of use for her. Anyways, follow me, I'll take you to him." Turning around, he slumped his shoulders, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Like a blinded deer, Nejire's body almost refused to move. That name... _Shigaraki_... the leader of the League of Villains. She'd only seen pictures of him on the news, but it was just enough to terrify her. All those hands... _what were they for_?! It freaked her out, and she knew how dangerous he was. And that he was covered in hands. _Why did he have so many severed hands_?!

She must have trembled, or whimpered quietly, because even Twice and Spinner glanced over to her and shook their heads, giving her gentle pats on the back. "You'll be fine, don't worry! He obviously doesn't want you dead, so just... try not to piss him off and you'll be fine."

Dabi glanced over his shoulder to her, that icy gaze seeming to cut right into her. "Don't make me repeat myself." With a heavy sweatdrop, Nejire nodded and joined him, following as he walked off.

"I'll write you a nice eulogy!" Twice called out in a loud whisper, giving her a thumbs up.

* * *

Nejire somehow expected him to break character once they were both out of earshot from the other two villains, but Dabi remained quiet, eyes heavily lidded as he sauntered on. The silence ate at her until she couldn't hold words back any longer. "Hey hey, no hard feelings about our fight, right? It's funny, we were pretty even with each other, huh? Isn't that funny?" She looked over to him but got no reaction at all. "Hm? Didja hear me?"

". . . yes. I heard you."

"Oh! Good! So do you think it's funny?"

"Not really."

"Oh. Well... what things do you think are funny?"

" _Please stop talking_."

"Do you like jokes? What about puns? Do you like to laugh?"

Dabi slowly inhaled, then exhaled with a groan. "I think it's funny that one of U.A.'s top students is a naive little airhead. That's pretty funny to me."

"Naive...?" She pouted her lip childishly. "I'm not naive!"

"Then you're just plain mad."

"When life itself seems lunatic, who knows where madness lies?"

His eyes narrowed as he turned to her. "Did you just... quote Don Quixote to me?"

Her warm blue gaze met his, and she smiled, a soft laugh erupting from her lips. "And, perhaps the maddest of all is to see life as it is, and not as it _should_ be."

He didn't know why he was suddenly so focused on her lips, or when he realized how cute her laugh was, but as he brought her to Tomura Shigaraki, a villainous human dripping with venom and toxicity, he couldn't help but notice she was the exact opposite. She was young and inexperienced and naive and stupid and quoting a romantic philosophy novel, and deep down within the dusty, dark, rotten confines of his chest, his heart seemed to stir — if just for a tiny little flutter.

"Whatever, Miss Curious. Shigaraki's just through those doors, how about you go talk to him and then get back to me about _madness_."

Nodding, Nejire stepped forward to push open the doors, but paused for a moment to glance back to him with a grin. "Hey hey, if I'm naive, then you are, too! After all, you're the villain who kept the hero safe after she was knocked unconscious~"

"Yeah yeah," he waved his hand dismissively at her as she entered the other room, closing the doors behind her, "maybe we're both a little mad."

* * *

 **a/n;**  
Awww, thank you guys so much for the reviews, faves, and follows so far! ;-;  
I wasn't sure how much attention/love this story would get, but it did better than I thought!  
It means the world that you guys take the time to let me know how you like it!


	3. Black & White

_Previously..._

"Whatever, Miss Curious. Shigaraki's just through those doors, how about you go talk to him and then get back to me about _madness_."

Nodding, Nejire stepped forward to push open the doors, but paused for a moment to glance back to him with a grin. "Hey hey, if I'm naive, then you are, too! After all, you're the villain who kept the hero safe after she was knocked unconscious~"

"Yeah yeah," he waved his hand dismissively at her as she entered the other room, closing the doors behind her, "maybe we're both a little mad."

* * *

 **TWISTED EMBERS**  
 _Chapter 3: Black & White_

* * *

Nejire couldn't help but feel like a lamb to the slaughter as she opened the doors to the warehouse receiving area, a large open space with dim lighting. Standing with his back to her was the tall, slender form of Tomura Shigaraki, and the mere sight of the psychotic villain in person was enough to cause the female's eyes to widen with a combination of awe and fear. At the sound of her quiet entrance, he turned his head to glance over his shoulder. A blood-red eye staring her down between the cold, pale fingers of a disembodied hand that covered his face.

" _Ahh_ ," he seemed to hiss, "the damsel awakens."

She blinked for a moment, a drop of sweat forming at her temple as her gaze locked onto the hand at his face, a shiver running down her spine. _So weird!_ All she wanted to do was ask about it, but even she could see that might be a bad idea for an opening act. Realizing she had just been staring silently, she blinked again as she did her best to focus. "Hey hey! You... must be Shigaraki, yeah?"

He scoffed, turning to face her as he threw up his hands in a teasing gesture. "What gave it away? My _face_ , or all the _villains_ around here?"

"Your face? IT'S ALWAYS COVERED BY THAT CREEPY H—!" With squeak, she clasped her hands over her mouth to stop herself, but feared it was too late, and that he would be offended and attack. But he didn't, and instead only narrowed his eyes at her.

"Well well, here I have the most esteemed #2 student from U.A in my company, and she's managed to deduce that I wear a hand on my face. **Tch** , I was hoping you'd be of some use to me."

Slowly, she lowered her hands. "Oh... you know... who I am?"

"I didn't understand why Dabi would bring some girl back with him, but when he told me you were one of U.A's _Big 3_ , I thought this would be interesting."

"Wh-Whaddaya mean? What are ya gonna do with me? Huh?" She tilted her head, poking at her cheeks. "Am I... a hostage? Are you gonna do experiments?! OH OH, I KNOW!" She slammed a fist down against the open palm of her other hand. "ARE YOU GONNA TORTURE ME?"

"What the. . . What? No? Wait, why do you seem happy about tha—"

"I'VE READ LOTS OF BOOKS ABOUT TORTURE! Didja know, this one king loved torture _SOOOO_ much that he ordered—"

"—STOP. PLEASE."

Nejire flinched slightly, immediately falling silent, eyes widened again as Shigaraki reached out towards her.

"No. _No torture_. So please, **shut the hell up**."

She bit her lip, resisting the urge to speak, and it took every ounce of effort she could afford to spend. However, before she had the chance to burst into words, another voice spoke up from the darkness, and she realized there was another being in the room with them.

" _Nejire Hadou_ , is it?" The male's voice was matured and smooth, and as she looked over to him, she realized he was another villain described by U.A — his body seemed to be made of some kind of black mist, though the bulk of his form was encased within an expensive looking suit and tie, with black slacks and dress shoes. "Let's not get too off-track, and get to the heart of the matter, shall we?"

Shigaraki groaned under his breath as Nejire clamped her lips shut and nodded.

"Excellent. Now Miss Hadou, we weren't expecting to entertain neither guests nor hostages, so I suppose your actions and words here will determine which one you'll become."

"Oh! Definitely a guest! I pick guest!"

"That's a pleasure to hear," he spoke politely, drawing closer to her, "so then, if you wish to be considered a guest with us, we would have no reason to act with violence or hostility toward you. Isn't that right, Tomura?"

He let out another groan, reaching up to scratch at his neck. "Yeah yeah. As long as she doesn't do anything stupid. Well... other than _talking_."

With slow, timid steps, Nejire closed the distance between her and Shigaraki, her curiosity overcoming her fear. He eyed her suspiciously, his body language becoming defensive as she stopped just in front of him. He wasn't sure whether to anticipate an attack, and grew more annoyed as she invaded his personal bubble with those big bright naive eyes. Her index finger pressed against her soft lower lip as she leaned forward, then to the side, as if trying to catch a glimpse of his face beneath the hand.

"Wh-What are you looking at?!"

"Is it attached?" She asked, humming as she examined him. "Or can you take it off? What's it for? Is it a real hand?" Her hand stretched out to touch it, but was immediately smacked away, causing her to lean back and withdraw her hand.

" _DON'T TOUCH HIM_."

His visible eye seared with an intense and sudden rage, and another shiver of fear shot across her skin like lightning. "I... I'm sorry." Her eyes softened, her hands folding together as her gaze dropped towards the ground. "I get carried away sometimes. You... called it 'him' so it must be something very sentimental and personal to you... so, I'm sorry."

Her genuine apology caught him off guard, and his rage seemed to die down. With a scoff, he scratched again at his neck. "Tch, whatever. You can't just go around touching people."

As her eyes traveled back up, they landed on something sticking out of the pocket of his long black jacket. "H-Hey hey! Is that a GameBoy? You like to play games?" Instinctively she reached to grab at it, and her hand was swatted away again, this time with less force.

" **WHAT** did I _JUST_ say about touching people?!" He growled, his dried and cracked lips curving into a frown, but after a moment he pulled the GameBoy out of his pocket, glancing to Kurogiri for a moment before looking back to her. "But, yeah."

Her eyes brightened as he answered. "That's pretty cool! I love games, too! Whatcha playin'?"

"...the latest Fire Emblem," he reluctantly answered, "though I've already beaten it twice."

"No way! I have that! But I couldn't get past the second battle, it's way harder than the older ones!"

"Of course it is," he scoffed, "they finally stopped making it for babies and amp'd up the difficulty. It's all about strategy, and who's in your party."

"Yeah, it's super hard now! So you must be really good to beat it twice!"

"Eh, I guess."

"Hey hey! I know! What if I bring my game over sometime? Maybe you can help me get past that battle!"

"Tch, fight your own damn battles!"

"But..." her lips stretched into a warm smile, parting as a soft giggle bubbled out, "you said it's important to keep a good party. That goes for real life, too! If you could help me and show me where I'm going wrong, I'd love to do it together! If I'm the brawler, I need a good strategist~"

"~so you're wanting to party up?" His frown slowly furled into a smirk. "And why would a top hero want to party with a _villain_?"

Her grin faded, her voice becoming soft and quiet. "People use those terms like we're intrinsically different. I'm training to become a hero, because I want to protect people. And apparently to do that, I have to fight villains... which is what you guys call yourselves. But no one's attacked or tried to hurt me here, and fighting you right now... who would I be protecting?"

Shigaraki was quiet, watching her closely, his hand slowly sliding the game back into his pocket. "So, you don't agree with the hero society?"

"No, I... I don't! I don't like how they tell us the world is black and white. I don't like the fact that... I might not be able to be friends with any of you, because I'm in one category and you're in another. We might be very different, but you, Shigaraki-kun... you like video games! And so do I! So we should be able to play them together, and talk about them!"

"Well well, Miss Hadou," Kurogiri chuckled quietly as he saw Shigaraki's smirk beginning to widen into a grin, "what an interesting perspective. In fact, I believe we're on the same page... for the most part, anyways. Our goal is to ultimately dismantle this great lie."

"Society and its rules," Shigaraki hissed with growing excitement, "they must be changed. _Destroyed_. And we do need help with that. So, perhaps you could be of use to us after all... What do you say, Hadou? Are you really ready to party up?"

Nejire's sapphire hues lit up, her grin spreading from ear to ear as she nodded with great enthusiasm. "Yeah yeah! But! Does this mean you'll stop hurting people?! Because I can't just let ya go around hurting people! I'd still have to whack you in the noggin!"

"Of course, of course," he purred. "With your help, we might be able to change things with much less violence."

"Really? Yeah! Let's do it, then!" She struck a pose, valiantly punching the air. "It's like we'll fight bad guys together! Only the bad guys are the PEOPLE WHO TELL US—"

"—YES, _yes_ , god we get it."

"Okay!"

"Now, how about we go back and let the others know we're teaming up, hmm?"

"Oh, alright!"

" _Good_." Walking past her, he opened the doors and gestured for her to follow. Dabi had been waiting patiently on the other side, glancing over as the two came out. "Hadou, keep walking down this hallway, then take a right. The others are probably there now, you should get acquainted with them. Dabi will follow after you in just a moment."

She nodded to the both of them before walking off, leaving the both of them behind. Dabi's eyes closed, his crossed arms falling to his sides. "What's the verdict?"

"She wants a world where everyone gets along. How the fuck is she the #2 student?" Scratching the side of his neck with a finger, he huffed. "At any rate, she's no threat. Keep her happy, but don't let her leave. I'll send word to U.A that one of their precious top students has turned on them and joined us. I wonder what they'll do then?"

"So we're what... babysitting her?"

"If you play nice, she'll think she's staying on her own accord. _And so will the school_."

"Whatever." Shoving his hands into his pockets, Dabi turned and began walking after Nejire. "You're the boss."

Shigaraki grinned, chuckling to himself as he turned and went back through the doors to conspire with Kurogiri. _Who knew such an airheaded little hero could become such a perfect pawn?_

* * *

 **author's note;** Ahh, my apologies for taking so long to update this! x_x  
But thank you again for all the positive reviews and interest! :3  
I like writing for myself but it always helps the muse stick around  
when you know other people are enjoying it, too!

Also, for point of reference, I guess the timeline here is post-Overhaul arc  
but before High End is introduced. That's why the League of Villains is in  
a warehouse, and not the bar they used to hang out in, before the raid.

The League kind of disappears from the manga after Overhaul! So I  
figured this story could fit right into that gap, to sort of fill out the  
behind-the-scenes stuff our fave villains have been up to! ;-;


End file.
